Star Trek: Haunted Ship
by BballGalKaitlin
Summary: When the Enterprise becomes haunted by an unknown creature, Scotty is tortured to near insanity, Dr. McCoy is poisoned by cyanide powder in his drink, and Spock is kidnapped to become a brainwashed minion. It's up to Captain Kirk to save his three best friends, and the ship from a tragic ending. (With Baby Julia McCoy)!
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1:**

Captain Kirk was up late one night on the USS Enterprise. He had an unsettling noise from the outside of his quarters. To be safe, he decided to get out of bed, and go check out all the quarters, to make sure everything was running smoothly and usually. Not knowing, Spock had also heard a disturbance from his quarters, and was headed towards Captain Kirk's direction. The two were looking behind of them, not seeing they were about to bump into each other. When they did, Captain Kirk jumped up, then relieved to see it was just Spock.

"Spock…you scared me," Captain Kirk spoke, smiling a little.

Spock raised an eyebrow.

Captain Kirk cleared his throat, getting back to being his 'in charge' self.

"What are you doing up so late?" Captain Kirk questioned, seriously.

"What are you doing up, Captain?" Spock remarked.

"I heard a disturbance outside my quarters; I decided to get up and check out the area."

"As did I, Captain,"

They looked at each other for several moments, recognizing that they were both standing there in their Starfleet pajamas and bathrobes that went down to their ankles. Captain Kirk had a silk green robe with his insignia in the top left corner and black slippers on. Spock had on a silk dark blue bathrobe with his insignia in the top corner, as well, wearing dark brown slippers.

"Anyways, uh, what did this disturbance sound like, Spock?" Captain Kirk questioned, trying to both figure out if it was the same thing he heard, and to get out of this awkward silence they had entered.

"Captain, if my ears were perceiving sounds correctly, which I'm 99.999999% sure, considering I was up working on my computer, the sound was somewhat eerie, somewhat sounding like a faint moaning or wailing sound." Spock answered.

"I head the exact same thing, Spock." Captain Kirk answered.

"What's going on here," A whisper came from behind them. Captain Kirk and Spock turned to see Scotty was standing their in his Starfleet pajamas and red silk bathrobe with his insignia on it, as well, with his plaid slippers that resembled a kilt.

"Nothing, Scotty; Spock and I just heard a noise, was all." Captain Kirk answered.

"Did it sound like a faint, eerie wailing noise?" Scotty questioned.

"Yes, how did you…" Captain Kirk was cut off by Scotty.

"I heard it, too, Captain," Scotty answered.

"So, it appears that it wasn't a faint figment of our imaginations from being up late at night." Spock stated.

"I was reading my book in bed, when I heard it, Captain." Scotty added.

"Wait…where's Dr. McCoy," Captain Kirk questioned.

"Captain, if I do recall to earlier tonight, you had told Dr. McCoy to head to bed earlier, from the fatigue he has been suffering from, recently." Spock answered.

"Oh, yes; poor man's been working like crazy." Captain Kirk answered.

"You're not planning on going to his quarters and waking him up, do yah?" Scotty cried, softly.

"I just wanna see, if he's alright; if everything checks out to be fine, I'll be satisfied for the rest of the night, and the three of us can work on this in the morning." Captain Kirk answered.

The three men walked off to the west to go to Dr. McCoy's quarters, where he was peacefully sleeping soundly in his bed.

Dr. McCoy was wearing light blue pajamas with white snowflakes on them. His pants matched his button up, long sleeved shirt. He was all covered up in his blankets, his right hand resting comfortably on his belly, and sleeping comfortably and contently.

Captain Kirk, Spock, and Scotty quietly walked in, not wanting to wake up Dr. McCoy from sleep. Dr. McCoy had recently been given many stress building assignments by Starfleet Command, making him have many nights where he was up until almost 6 AM, then had to get up again by 9 AM…not to mention he had a four month old baby, a girl, named Julia Eleanor McCoy, that kept him up for several hours in the night. Captain Kirk felt horrible that he had to wake his dear friend from one of his best sleep nights he'd had in a long while, but he needed to know he was alright in order to go back to sleep.

"Bones…Bones…" Captain Kirk whispered.

Dr. McCoy continued to peacefully sleep.

"Wonder what he's dreaming about?" Scotty questioned.

"He might tell us, when he wakes up." Captain Kirk answered.

Dr. McCoy groaned softly, turning his head forward to face the front. He fluttered his eyes open to find Captain Kirk, Spock, and Scotty standing over him.

"Jim…Spock…Scotty…what on earth…you three doing inma room?" Dr. McCoy grumbled, still half asleep.

"Sorry to wake you so early, Bones, but I needed to ask you a question?" Captain Kirk spoke, softly, not wanting to wake Julia up.

"Jim…it's…" Dr. McCoy glanced over at his alarm clock, just barely able to make out what time it was. "1:30 inna morning; what could you possibly needa ask me at this hour?" Dr. McCoy grumbled, slurring his words, slightly.

"We wanted to know, if you heard a faint wailing sound sometime tonight?" Captain Kirk questioned.

Dr. McCoy rubbed his fingers with his eyes, realizing he probably wasn't going back to sleep for a while.

"Did it sound like a baby," Dr. McCoy grumbled, sounding highly irritated.

"The frequencies of the sound that I, Captain, and Mr. Scott heard was a high pitched moaning or wailing noise; from the sensors in my computer, the sound frequency was too high for any baby's cry." Spock answered.

"Ugh…why couldn't you just wake me up in the morning?" Dr. McCoy growled, softly.

"We're sorry, Bones; I just need to make sure, so I'm certain for whatever's going on here." Captain Kirk stated, softly.

Dr. McCoy lay there for a moment, trying to think back from what he could remember; most was a bunch of black gaps from being in such a deep sleep that he was enjoying for the first time in about four months, since Julia had been born.

"I don't…remember…" Dr. McCoy answered, falling asleep, again.

"Bones, _please_; you've gotta try to think." Captain Kirk begged.

Dr. McCoy had silently smacked his lips together and was falling back to sleep, when the faint wailing noise Captain Kirk was speaking of was heard by him in his room. It sounded like it was coming from outside his room. Dr. McCoy opened his eyes, instantly, then looked up at his three friends.

"I heard that noise; no wonder I was dreaming of being in Scotland in some ancient castle being chased by a banshee." Dr. McCoy spoke, now more awake.

"That doesn't sound very pleasant to dream, McCoy…well, besides the being in Scotland part." Scotty spoke.

Dr. McCoy chuckled softly.

"No, it was quite alright; not scared more than just confused." Dr. McCoy answered.

As the four were about to start talking, again, a little high pitched cry was heard from another part of Dr. McCoy's room; his sitting area was where it was coming from.

"Oh, someone's wanting Daddy," Scotty cooed. He walked over to the crib and gently took his arms and lifted baby Julia up in his arms. She was crying and balling, not too loudly, but loud enough to know she wanted something…or someone.

Julia had been born to Dr. McCoy, after he was depressed and wanted to have a baby of his own. Spock suggested a treatment that was being experimented on Vulcan to make men have babies, since women on Vulcan were starting to prefer not to have children as much. It was successful, and Dr. McCoy became pregnant with little Julia, then gave birth to her on December 17, 2268.

"Oh, little lass, alright; let's take yah to your Papa, yeah." Scotty cooed.

Julia continued fussing in Scotty's arms, as he walked over to where the rest of the party was. Scotty gently placed Julia in Dr. McCoy's arms. Dr. McCoy couldn't help but smile and his little girl.

"Hey, little munchkin; you missing your Dada, here?" Dr. McCoy cooed.

Julia stopped fussing and looked up to see it was her dad. Julia gave a small smile and softly cooed a little. Dr. McCoy smiled and kissed her little head, then held her close to him.

"Well, what are we gonna do about this disturbance on my ship?" Captain Kirk questioned, now that everyone was settled down.

"Captain, do you really think it's a logical idea to deal with this problem at this time of hour?" Spock questioned.

"You suppose we let this thing continue to lurk around the ship; someone could be harmed or killed, otherwise." Captain Kirk answered.

"Jim, I think it'll be fine until morning; it won't do any good, tonight, when we're exhausted and tired, and not thinking clearly." Dr. McCoy answered.

"I guess you're right, Bones." Captain Kirk answered.

"Can I go back to sleep, now?" Dr. McCoy begged.

"Of course," Captain Kirk answered.

He gently took Julia out of his arms and put the sleeping baby back in her crib. Dr. McCoy sighed and went back to sleep. The three other men walked out of Dr. McCoy's room to go to bed for the night.


	2. Chapter 2

Morning had arrived, and Captain Kirk, Spock, and Scotty had gotten up bright and early to start investigating the ship. They decided to let Dr. McCoy sleep in for a little longer, knowing that he could use all the sleep he could get.

Captain Kirk, Spock, and Scotty were walking around the ship with their phasers and communicators, walking side by side with one another.

"Where do yah think this thing is, Captain?" Scotty questioned.

"Could be anywhere, Scotty," Captain Kirk answered.

"Captain, by how my tricorder took in the readings from my computer, last night, it seems this thing is some type of supernatural energy." Spock answered.

"What do you mean, Spock?" Captain Kirk questioned.

"Assuming what I currently believe based on these facts, I have logical reasoning to believe this is a ghost we are after, Captain." Spock answered.

"A ghost,"

"Affirmative,"

"Like banshees, or…" Scotty was cut off by Spock.

"I do not know specifics, Mr. Scott, but if these readings are correct, then we are indeed after some sort of spiritual being from another world beyond us." Spock answered.

"How did it get here, though?" Scotty questioned.

"Once we find it, there's a possibility of finding out those answers." Spock answered.

Scotty nodded, and the three of them continued walking, when Dr. McCoy turned a corner and spotted them. Julia was in a little sling that was dark blue and had planets and stars on it that he carried her in. Dr. McCoy turned around and walked towards them and joined in with them. He had his own communicator, tricorder, and phaser.

"What do you guys know, so far?" Dr. McCoy questioned.

"Spock believes what's causing the disturbance on the ship is a ghost of some kind." Captain Kirk answered.

"A ghost," Dr. McCoy remarked, puzzled.

"My readings on my tricorder show fairly accurate readings of the sound frequencies the creature is making from its moaning and wailing. The only close compatibility I have yet to come up to match with it yet would be a ghost." Spock answered.

Dr. McCoy raised an eyebrow, making a face that read 'interesting' on it.

"How's the little lady, here?" Captain Kirk cooed, touching Julia's cheek lightly. Dr. McCoy chuckled softly, as he looked down at his little gal.

"Doing just fine; been a little fussy this morning, but settled down, after I fed her a bottle." Dr. McCoy answered, rubbing the back of her head carefully.

Julia looked up at Captain Kirk with her little blue eyes. It amazed him how much she resembled Dr. McCoy. Of course he was her father, but her face and the way she looked at you…it was like another Dr. McCoy was living inside this little baby.

"Hey there, you," Captain Kirk cooed.

Julia cooed and gripped onto Dr. McCoy's blue sweater, clenching it in her fist. Dr. McCoy couldn't help but smile and leaned forward and kissed her tiny little head.

The four of them continued walking, when they heard the moaning and wailing, again.

"What was that," Scotty gasped.

"It sounded like Spock's ghost," Captain Kirk answered.

Spock raised an eyebrow, not following his captain's illogicality.

"Where did it come from, though?" Dr. McCoy questioned.

"Let's go down this hallway," Captain Kirk replied.

The four went down farther into another part of the ship near Engineering. They looked around them from several angles before turning to face each other, again.

"I can see anything, Jim." Dr. McCoy stated.

"Nothing, Captain," Scotty answered.

"Spock," Captain Kirk questioned.

"Negative, Captain," Spock answered.

"How the heck do yah plan on us catching a ghost; we're space travelers, not Ghostbusters!" Scotty cried, referring to an ancient TV show made back on earth.

"No, but we are assigned to fight anything disrupting the ship from continuing its regular activities and schedule." Captain Kirk answered.

"Aye, Captain," Scotty answered back.

Julia began crying a little. Dr. McCoy bounced her gently side to side, hushing her.

"Oh…yeah, you're alright, baby…Daddy's got you. I won't let anything get yah, I promise, sweetpea." Dr. McCoy answered, kindly.

Julia gripped onto her daddy's shirt, not wanting to let go for whatever reason. Dr. McCoy leaned forward and gave her a little kiss to reassure her she was safe and that he was there to look out for her.

"Spock, you have an idea what we should do next?" Captain Kirk asked.

"No, Captain, but I am trying to think of a logical approach." Spock replied.

"How long you suppose that'll take?" Dr. McCoy questioned.

"Doctor, if we go about this the wrong way, not just us, but the entire ship could be harmed and/or killed." Spock answered.

Dr. McCoy glared at Spock then looked back down at Julia. He looked up for a moment, when he spotted something wrong with Scotty. He was standing there still as a statue, his eyes gaping, his pupils dilated, and looked horrified.

"Scotty…everything alright," Dr. McCoy asked, concerned.

Scotty couldn't talk; he could get a faint breath out, but nothing more.

"Scotty, what is it," Captain Kirk questioned.

Scotty clutched his head with his hands and began screaming.

"Aahhhhhhhhhh; stop, stop, stop; leave me alone, yah demonic Halloween spirit!" Scotty wailed.

Dr. McCoy handed Julia gently to Captain Kirk, so he could examine Scotty. Dr. McCoy took out his tricorder and scanned Scotty for anything medically wrong.

"He seems to be suffering from some sort of hallucination…or a nightmare while awake." Dr. McCoy answered.

"Can you treat him?" Captain Kirk questioned.

"I can give him a general narcotic, but I don't know how long it'll last." Dr. McCoy answered.

"Give it to him," Captain Kirk answered.

Dr. McCoy pulled a vaccine out of his medical bag and injected it into Scotty's arm. He slowly began to stop screaming and calm down. He looked around then saw Dr. McCoy, Captain Kirk, and Spock all around him.

"Oh, thank you, Dr. McCoy," Scotty spoke, relieved.

"Scotty, what happened," Captain Kirk questioned.

"I don't know, Captain; it was as if I was being mentally tortured with my biggest fears in known existence." Scotty answered.

"If I remember anything from readings back in high school, some fictional spirits were known to slowly torture people to the point of insanity." Dr. McCoy answered.

Captain Kirk handed Dr. McCoy his baby back, then turned to Spock.

"Okay, so we obviously know this ghost isn't a friendly one." Captain Kirk stated.

"That, or it wants something from us." Spock answered.

"Like what,"

"Until we find it…there's no way of knowing that answer, Captain."


	3. Chapter 3

The four of them decided that they would split up for lunch, and meet back in the break room. Captain Kirk and Spock went off to eat lunch, Dr. McCoy went to Sickbay to check on his patients, and Scotty went to Engineering to check out how everything was running.

After eating, Captain Kirk and Spock met up with Dr. McCoy in Sickbay. Julia was in a little crib next to Dr. McCoy's desk, and Dr. McCoy was checking things off on his clipboard, as he went from room to room. He turned around and smiled at Captain Kirk and Spock.

"You two have a nice lunch?" Dr. McCoy questioned.

"We sure did…you gonna eat anything?" Captain Kirk questioned.

Dr. McCoy pointed to a glass on his desk with his pencil before going back to checking things off his list. A glass with blue liquid sat next to his computer; not being able to have a drink was killing Dr. McCoy, when he was pregnant with Julia, but like any other good father, he loved Julia more than drinking.

Spock raised an eyebrow, as if he thought something were wrong with what Dr. McCoy was drinking.

"Doctor, I can't help but have a sense of feeling that something is out of place about your drink." Spock answered.

"Spock, you've seen me drink this many times, before." Dr. McCoy answered, smiling.

"Correct, Doctor, however, today, it seems particularly odd." Spock answered.

"Spock…I'm beginning to think you're developing the human emotion of paranoia." Dr. McCoy teased.

"That's highly illogical, Doctor; I'm a Vulcan, therefore, we can't feel human emotions."

Dr. McCoy chuckled, shaking his head, then set his clipboard down on the table where he was standing. He walked over and took a drink of his blue liquid. He licked his lips and refreshed himself.

"Ah…I forgot how much I loved this stuff." Dr. McCoy sighed, as if he hadn't had that stuff in over two years.

"Bones…you and your drinks," Captain Kirk teased.

Dr. McCoy chuckled, then took another drink of his blue liquid, finishing the glass entirely. He then walked over and leaned over Julia's crib, and smiled at her.

"Hi, there…what are you doing down there, little lady?" Dr. McCoy cooed.

Julia smiled at her daddy, and made a few coo noises.

Dr. McCoy chuckled and was about to reach for her and pick her up, when Dr. McCoy felt a sudden dizzy spell. He held onto Julia's crib and shook his head a few times.

"Whew," Dr. McCoy gasped.

"You alright, Bones," Captain Kirk questioned.

"Yeah…just some fatigue, is all." Dr. McCoy answered.

Captain Kirk wasn't 100% satisfied, but decided to drop the topic.

"So, I think when we meet up with Scotty, we start searching on the Bridge. What better place to haunt people on a ship than the Bridge?" Captain Kirk spoke.

"Logical enough, Captain," Spock answered.

Dr. McCoy began coughing, and he clutched his belly, as if he were in searing pain.

"Bones…are you alright," Captain Kirk gasped.

Dr. McCoy began gasping for air, as if he couldn't breathe. His skin was pale and eyes were blood shot red. After about thirty seconds, Dr. McCoy's eyes rolled back and fell to the ground. He began to jerk around, as if he were having some sort of seizure, but it wasn't, and continued to gasp for air while doing so.

"Bones," Captain Kirk cried.

Captain Kirk ran to Dr. McCoy to check and see if he was alright.

Dr. McCoy continued gasping for air and having convulsions.

"Dr. M'Benga…Dr. M'Benga…Dr. M'Benga, quickly; man down, man down!" Captain Kirk yelled.

Dr. M'Benga rushed into the clearing with several other Starfleet doctors and pushed Captain Kirk to the side to examine Dr. McCoy. Dr. M'Benga quickly scanned him before continuing any further.

"Get him to a bio bed, now!" Dr. M'Benga ordered.

The three other doctors carried Dr. McCoy off to the room with the bio beds. Dr. M'Benga rushed into the room, leaving Captain Kirk and Spock to themselves.

"Oh…Bones," Captain Kirk quivered.

Julia began to cry, wanting Dr. McCoy. Captain Kirk walked over to her and picked her up gently in his arms, though the poor little baby continued to cry. Captain Kirk began hushing her and rocking her, but Julia continued to cry.


	4. Chapter 4

Scotty met Captain Kirk and Spock down in Sickbay. He paced with Spock, as Captain Kirk desperately to try and make Julia stop crying. He rocked her, try feeding her, hushing her, changing her diaper, burping her, singing her, but nothing was satisfying the poor baby.

"Poor little baby just wants her pop." Scotty sadly spoke, feeling sorry for Julia.

"Oh, yes; I know," Captain Kirk cooed.

Julia continued crying and fussing.

As Scotty and Spock were about to begin pacing, again, Dr. M'Benga came out of Sickbay.

"What's the condition, Dr. M'Benga?" Captain Kirk demanded.

"Leonard's been poisoned by cyanide powder. It must have been accidentally put into his drink." Dr. M'Benga answered.

"_Cyanide powder_," Captain Kirk exclaimed.

"Does Sickbay even carry such stuff in their supplies?" Scotty questioned.

"We use cyanide rarely, but it's usually used to end someone's life quickly." Dr. M'Benga answered.

"Who would put cyanide powder in McCoy's drink; cyanide was used in Concentration and Death Camps back in Nazi Germany to kill the Jewish." Scotty cried.

"I know, Scotty…I don't know who put that powder in McCoy's drink, but I intend to find out who." Captain Kirk snarled.

Julia continued wailing, and it was getting angrier and louder.

"Can we see Dr. McCoy," Captain Kirk begged, rocking Julia to try and calm her.

"He's stable; he's very sleepy from medications and IV's we're giving him to flush out the poison, though. There's a chance he may not be very coherent." Dr. M'Benga stated.

Captain Kirk, Spock, and Scotty walked into the room, and saw Dr. McCoy hooked to tubes and machines helping him breathe and giving him fluids to flush out all the cyanide in his body. He was sleeping, as Dr. M'Benga had warned the three men.

Julia began screeching, and Captain Kirk began to rock her, again.

"Oh, little lady…sshhhhhh; you're alright…Daddy's gonna be alright." Captain Kirk cooed.

Julia continued to scream and wail.

"Captain, put her next to McCoy; he may not be able to hold her, but at least she's next to him." Scotty stated, thinking of an idea.

Captain Kirk nodded and set a very upset Julia down next to her father's body. Julia whimpered for a few moments, then settled down after feeling her father's warmth from his body, and his belly gently rise against her. Julia fluttered her eyes and fell to sleep.

"Captain…I have a logical reason to believe this spirit we're after poisoned Dr. McCoy." Spock answered.

"What makes you say that, Spock?" Captain Kirk questioned.

"So far, it has harmed Mr. Scott and Dr. McCoy either mentally or physically somehow. It seems to only be focused on the four of us, therefore I have reason to believe it does indeed want something from us, and will continue to cause harm, until we do so." Spock answered.

"But how can we give it what it wants, if we don't even know _what _it is it wants?!"

"Unfortunately, I don't know the answer to that question."

Captain Kirk turned back to Dr. McCoy and hesitated to wake him.

"Bones…" Captain Kirk stuttered.

Dr. McCoy slowly opened his eyes; his eyes were still red and skin was still pale, but he had stopped jerking and gasping for air. Instead, he just looked God awful tired and ill.

"Jim…" Dr. McCoy spoke, raspy.

"Are you feeling alright," Captain Kirk softly asked.

"I'm…exhausted…where's…Julia?" Dr. McCoy questioned, heavily groggy.

"Why don't look by you,"

Dr. McCoy slightly turned his head and gave a very faint smile to Julia, then looked back at Captain Kirk, with his eyes closed.

"Jim…I need…you…to take…care of her…while I'm sick in here." Dr. McCoy spoke.

"Absolutely, Bones," Captain Kirk answered.

"Take…good care…of her…if…I don't…" Dr. McCoy trailed off, falling to sleep.

"Bones, don't quit fighting now; you can get through this, I know you can, Bones. You're too stubborn to die, especially now."

Dr. McCoy wouldn't answer.

"Bones," Captain Kirk questioned.

Dr. McCoy began gasping for air and jerking mildly. Captain Kirk quickly took Julia in his arms, before Dr. McCoy began to jerk even more. A few seconds later, Dr. McCoy began jerking violently, and his monitor went off, alarming Dr. M'Benga and the other medical staff.

"Get an O2 saturation in here, stat; his lungs are collapsing!" Dr. M'Benga hollered.

Four other doctors ran in with machines and equipment to try and help Dr. McCoy. Captain Kirk, Spock, and Scotty were shoved out of the room, as they waited for an update on Dr. McCoy's health condition.

Two hours later…

Captain Kirk, Spock, and Scotty sat in chairs, as they waited for news on how Dr. McCoy was doing. Dr. M'Benga came out, frowning, and looking exhausted.

Captain Kirk looked up and shot up, along with Spock and Scotty.

"How is he," Captain Kirk worried.

"Dr. McCoy's not doing well; both of his lungs collapsed at the same time, and it took a long while to stabilize his breathing, again. He's not in a coma, but he's in a deep form of sleep…it doesn't look too good, from how he's responding to treatments." Dr. M'Benga stated.

"Dr. McCoy could…die," Scotty gasped.

"I'm afraid so," Dr. M'Benga sadly spoke.

Captain Kirk looked down at Julia, who was sleeping in his arms; he couldn't believe Julia may grow up as an orphan. Poor little baby didn't deserve to lose her dad; he wanted Dr. McCoy and Julia to develop many happy memories with each other and such a strong between them, that no other father and daughter would ever be able to replicate.

"Is there anything you can do for McCoy?" Captain Kirk quivered.

"I'll do everything I can, Captain Kirk, but he's mostly in God's hands, now." Dr. M'Benga spoke, sadly.

Captain Kirk nodded, sadly.

Dr. M'Benga walked off to another part of Sickbay.

"I can't believe it…Dr. McCoy could…" Scotty was about to break down and cry, when Captain Kirk stopped.

"Now, stop; don't start thinking like that. We need to be strong for Dr. McCoy, if we want him to survive through this. That means no crying and no giving up in hope." Captain Kirk ordered, harshly.

Scotty nodded, collecting himself.

Captain Kirk looked down, sadly at the little baby that now depended on him for love and care.

"Don't worry, little peanut; I promise, you'll be back with your daddy in no time…I promise you that." Captain Kirk softly spoke.

Julia continued to sleep through all of this.


	5. Chapter 5

Captain Kirk had gathered his phaser and communicator, along with the sling that Dr. McCoy always carried little Julia in with him. He, Spock, and Scotty had said goodbye to Dr. McCoy in Sickbay and entered out into the halls of the Enterprise.

"What do we do now, Captain?" Scotty questioned.

"Just stay close to one another, and no one…I repeat _no one_ wander off by themselves!" Captain Kirk ordered.

Spock and Scotty nodded, and they continued walking down the hall, when the lights began to flicker on and off.

"Captain, it seems the ship is having a power malfunction." Spock stated.

"Spock, I don't think that's what it is." Captain Kirk answered, sounding somewhat unsettled.

The three men heard the moaning and wailing, again, and quickly turned behind them to find nothing more than what was there before. They turned around and continued walking down the halls.

"Captain…what do yah suppose this thing _wants _from us?!" Scotty cried.

"If I knew that answer, this filthy vermin would be off of my ship by now, and Dr. McCoy wouldn't be in a hospital bed fighting for his life." Captain Kirk remarked, coldly. It wasn't Scotty he was mad with, and Scotty knew that very well…it was the ghost that was pissing him off.

The lights on the ship began to flicker, again.

"Please let that be a power malfunction," Scotty pleaded, to himself.

As the four were going down another hallway and began walking down it, the lights had turned completely off, and turned on a few red lights several moments later.

"Okay…now I'm freaked out." Captain Kirk admitted.

Spock looked around the area, wondering what had caused this to happen.

Scotty stopped and froze; he suddenly grabbed his head and began screaming.

"Aahhhhhhhhhhhh; stop! No, get away from me! Help!" Scotty screeched.

"Scotty, get a hold of yourself!" Captain Kirk ordered, frantically, shaking Scotty by the shoulders.

"They're…everywhere," Scotty sobbed.

"What…what, Scotty," Captain Kirk begged.

Scotty shrieked louder and crumpled to the ground, rolling around like a psychotic moron.

"Get away from me; don't touch me…I ain't afraid to use my bagpipe on yah!" Scotty wailed.

Captain Kirk ran to Spock's side.

"Spock, what do you think this is?" Captain Kirk begged.

"Mr. Scott seems to be suffering from subconscious thoughts that are strongly controlling him…more than likely, his worst fears." Spock answered.

"Can you do a mind meld to see what going on in his mind?"

Scotty was beginning to calm down.

"Not at the moment; his mental breakdown is almost over." Spock answered.

Scotty lifted his head from the ground and slowly looked around him. He caught his breath, slowly sat up, brushed himself off, then got to his feet.

"Scotty, are you alright," Captain Kirk questioned, worried.

"Captain…that was terrible," Scotty quivered.

"What, Scotty…what was it," Captain Kirk asked, panicked.

"The first one I had earlier, was my fear of Dracula sucking my blood…this one…they were all over the place." Scotty answered, frightened.

"What…what was all over the place?" Captain Kirk questioned.

Scotty began to sob.

"Spiders, Captain," Scotty blubbered.

"Fascinating," Spock spoke.

"What," Captain Kirk replied.

"It seems that this spiritual creature knows all of Mr. Scott's biggest fears. It creates these images, or hallucinations, that scare him to the point of insanity, and it seems that this spirit is going from the least frightful to the most extreme fear of all to Mr. Scott." Spock answered.

Scotty continued blubbering.

"I don't wanna face my biggest fear!" Scotty sobbed.

"Scotty, pull yourself together, man." Captain Kirk moaned.

"Captain, surely you know what it's like to have a deathly fear of something." Scotty whimpered, starting to calm down.

"The only thing I'm afraid of is the spirit doing any further harm to my ship and my crew, now come on." Captain Kirk remarked.

The three men continued down the hallway, searching for a spiritual demon that was running lose on the Enterprise.


	6. Chapter 6

Neither Captain Kirk, Spock, nor Scotty knew the time of the hour, but they assumed it was pretty late at night.

"Captain, shouldn't yah think we should get heading to bed?" Scotty questioned.

"After what happened to Dr. McCoy, I don't think so. Who knows who that thing will go after, next." Captain Kirk answered.

"I know who," Scotty answered, referring to himself.

"Besides you, Scotty; you're already being tortured…just…slower." Captain Kirk answered.

Scotty sighed and nodded, knowing it was all true. He realized this ghost was trying to slowly make him go mad, but he had to remember to fight it, and all he was seeing were hallucinations that weren't actually there.

"Captain, my tricorder's picking up a signal from over down that hall." Spock answered, pointing to the right.

"But only one person's allowed at a time to go down that hall." Scotty replied.

"Let's continue on, men; we're not falling for any of this thing's practical jokes." Captain Kirk stated.

The three men continued walking down the hallway they had been going down for the past hour. Captain Kirk and Scotty continued walking, as Spock stopped to analyze something peculiar by a wall. He knelt down and started to scan it with his tricorder. It was a bunch of green goop, something that highly resembled a glow stick. It was dripping down from somewhere, but Spock couldn't determine where the exact problem was located. He continued scanning the mysterious green liquid, when all he saw was black.

Captain Kirk and Scotty were now down the next hallway, searching for more clues and signs to find this creature.

"Spock, why don't you use your tricorder to scan the safety of this place." Captain Kirk replied, not looking behind him.

No answer came.

"Spock," Captain Kirk called.

Again, no answer.

"Mr. Spock," Captain Kirk ordered.

Once again, there was no answer from behind him or Scotty.

Captain Kirk and Scotty slowly turned around to find that Spock was no longer following them.

"Scotty…where's Spock," Captain Kirk quivered.

"I don't know, Captain; he was following us last I saw 'em." Scotty replied, worried.

Both men ran back down the way they came to where they had last seen Spock. Spock was gone…and no where to be found.

"Spock," Captain Kirk cried.

No answer.

"Spock," Captain Kirk hollered.

Again, nothing but silence.

"Spock," Captain Kirk yelled.

Nothing.

"Captain, I don't like where this is headed." Scotty whimpered.

"Just stay calm, Scotty; that's the only thing we _can _do." Captain Kirk answered, uneasy.

Julia began to sob a little. Captain Kirk began rocking her and shushing her softly.

"Yeah…I know; it's alright, darling." Captain Kirk cooed.

"You're safe with us, little lass." Scotty answered back.

Julia stopped sobbing, but whimpered a little, grabbing onto Captain Kirk's green shirt.

"Where could've Mr. Spock gone, sir?" Scotty questioned.

"I don't know…but I have a feeling I know where he is." Captain Kirk answered, fearful.

"Captain, look," Scotty gasped, pointing at the front of them.

Out from the wall emerged three ghosts, all female, moaning and wailing. Their skin was wrinkled, baggy, obviously able to tell they'd been deceased for many years. Their eyes were barely open, and some had scabs and scars on their faces.

Captain Kirk took a step forward towards them, while Scotty stood next to the wall, shivering in fear of what he was seeing.

"Captain Kirk," Ghost #1 wailed.

"Captain Kirk," Ghost #2 wailed.

"Captain Kirk," Ghost #3 wailed.

"What do you want," Captain Kirk ordered, softly.

"Leave your ship," Ghost #2 wailed.

"Leave the ship," Ghost #1 cried.

"Leave your ship…this is ours." Ghost #3 moaned.

"McCoy will die," Ghost #1 moaned.

"Spock works for us, now." Ghost #2 wailed.

"So, leave the ship…or face the end." Ghost #3 moaned.

The three ghosts began to cackle and fade away, though Ghost #2 flew near Scotty. Scotty gaped at it, quivering, hardly able to breathe. It started waving its hands and arms around his head, then Scotty went into another gaze of shock. He began breathing fast and rapid, then clenched his eyes together and grabbed his skull.

"Gaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhh…no; go, get, scram! I wanna live!" Scotty screeched. The three ghosts cackled more than vanished.

Scotty continued screaming and rolling around on the floor, longer than the last two had been. He screamed blood curdling shrieks and cried out for help several times. Captain Kirk was worried this one wouldn't end. After what seemed like hours, Scotty began to calm down, then shook viciously, as he staggered to stand up. Captain Kirk assisted him in getting up.

"Scotty…what did you see?" Captain Kirk questioned.

"A gorn…Captain," Scotty stuttered.

"A gorn," Captain Kirk stated.

"It tried to kill me, sir." Scotty spoke, though it seemed he were somewhat in another place other than where he was physically.

"Scotty…you've got to fight this! I need your help to save Spock, Scotty! Fight, Scotty, fight!" Captain Kirk begged, shaking his Chief Engineering Officer anxiously.

"I can't do anymore, Captain; my last two fears are the worst of all." Scotty quivered.

"Scotty, they're not real; they're images these spirits are creating to frighten you. You've got to remember that; we have to stop these ghosts for Spock and Dr. McCoy!" Captain Kirk cried back.

Scotty nodded, though still partly lost in another place.

"Come on, Scotty; let's try and find Spock." Captain Kirk spoke.

Scotty followed Captain Kirk, still in some psychological state of mind. Captain Kirk knew he had to hurry; Dr. McCoy had been poisoned and now could die, little Julia could lose her father, her only parent she had, Spock could become a minion for the ghosts forever, and Scotty was near to snapping and becoming mad. If his three best friends wanted to be saved, it was all up to Captain Kirk, now to save them.


	7. Chapter 7

Spock woke up on a table, his legs and arms strapped tightly to it. It seemed to him to look like a typical operating room, but then saw all the science experiments and knew he was in the ship's laboratory. Spock looked around to see if anyone was there.

"Captain," Spock called.

No one answered.

"Mr. Scott, you there," Spock questioned.

Nothing but silence.

Spock sighed and just lay there, as he looked up at the ceiling.

As he was about to close his eyes, again, he saw the three ghosts Captain Kirk and Scotty had seen appear in front of him.

"Mr. Spock," Ghost #2 wailed.

"Mr. Spock," Ghost #1 moaned.

"Mr. Spock," Ghost #3 wailed.

Spock raised an eyebrow.

"Fascinating," Spock whispered.

"A Vulcan," Ghost #1 wailed.

"A Vulcan," Ghost #2 wailed.

"Vulcans don't have emotions…" Ghost #3 moaned.

"Brainwash will be easy," Ghost #1 wailed.

"Make him one of us," Ghost #2 wailed.

"He shall have no mind after this…" Ghost #3 moaned.

The three ghosts cackled.

Spock raised an eyebrow.

"Logically, living creatures can not function without a functioning Nervous System, therefore your statement would be factually incorrect." Spock stated.

The three ghosts cackled.

"Give him sleep gas," Ghost #1 wailed.

"Nap time for Vulcan," Ghost #2 wailed.

"Knock him out till finished…" Ghost #3 moaned.

The ghosts grabbed a mask and tried putting it on Spock's face, but Spock, being overly intelligent, turned his head to the side. The ghost tilted the mask that way, but Spock turned his head the other direction, avoiding the mask.

Ghost #1 grabbed Spock's head and held it in place. Spock forcefully tried to move his head from the spirit's clutches, but the strength of their being seemed to be more powerful than a Vulcan was entirely. Spock closed his mouth and held his breath, not to breathe in the gas, as Ghost #3 put the mask on his face.

Spock held his breath for quite sometime, starting to turn a lightish blue color. He still forced himself to not breathe, though knew he would have to eventually or die from suffocating himself. Either way, logically, he knew he'd have to give in and lose this fight, anyways. Spock remained holding his breath, until his lungs felt as if they were dropping or deflating rapidly. Spock finally let his breath out, and continued breathing, slowly falling to sleep. He tried to fight it as much as he could, so he could stay awake long enough for Captain Kirk and Scotty to find him, but soon enough…the only thing he could see was a big black scenery before him.


	8. Chapter 8

Captain Kirk and Scotty had searched about four decks in the past two hours, now, and still no sign of Spock. The two men were beginning to grow more worried, wondering where the ghosts had taken Spock off to.

"Spock couldn't have gone too far, right, Captain?" Scotty questioned.

"At this point, I don't know where Spock could've gone, Scotty." Captain Kirk answered, worried. He looked down at Julia; she was sleeping. Looking at her and knowing there was a possibility she may grow up without her father or ever knowing him and remembering him, it killed him inside. Captain Kirk gave Julia a little kiss on her forehead, then rubbed the back of her head, gently.

"Don't worry, little lady; I promise you'll be back with your daddy soon." Captain Kirk answered, softly.

Julia continued to sleep; it was better than having her be awake and the continuous crying she did when awake. Nothing Captain Kirk or Scotty did seemed to console her to stop crying, but they could easily assume what it was she was crying about.

"I wonder how Dr. McCoy's doing?" Scotty questioned.

Captain Kirk thought for a while.

"Why don't we go visit with him, while we think of a way to find Spock." Captain Kirk spoke, sadly.

Scotty nodded and the two men headed towards Sickbay.

In Sickbay, the lights were on and functioning properly, as if the whole power failure in the halls had never happened.

"How is there power in here?" Scotty cried.

Dr. M'Benga came out with a clipboard he was looking over, when Captain Kirk spun him around.

"How's there power in here; the power's out all over the ship." Captain Kirk cried.

Dr. M'Benga raised an eyebrow.

"There's nothing wrong with the power, Captain; I contacted Mr. Sulu on the Bridge a while ago, and everything was working fine." Dr. M'Benga answered.

"Go outside in the halls and tell me yah don't see red emergency lights on!" Scotty wailed.

Dr. M'Benga sighed, put his clipboard down on Dr. McCoy's desk, and walked over to the door. He peeped his head out to see that both Captain Kirk and Scotty were both correct. He walked over to them and nodded.

"Could just be a malfunction in Engineering; nothing too bad." Dr. M'Benga answered.

Captain Kirk and Scotty decided to not tell Dr. M'Benga the fact they had seen three ghosts earlier that they predicted had kidnapped Spock for their own personal uses of evil acts.

"What are you two doing here?" Dr. M'Benga questioned.

"We wanted to see Dr. McCoy…know how he's doing." Captain Kirk answered.

Dr. M'Benga shook his head.

"I'm afraid his condition's too critical to allow him visitors at this moment. We need to keep him as sanitary as possible long enough for his body to fight off and get rid of the cyanide powder in his blood stream." Dr. M'Benga answered.

"Not even…I can't even put Julia down next to him to snuggle next to him for a minute at the most?" Captain Kirk questioned, sadly.

"I'm sorry, Captain Kirk; if anything changes in Dr. McCoy's condition, I will be sure to let you know immediately. When I go check on him, again, I'll let him know that his little girl's missing him and wishing him to get better." Dr. M'Benga replied.

Captain Kirk nodded.

"Thank you, Dr. M'Benga," Captain Kirk answered, meekly.

Dr. M'Benga nodded and went off to another room with his clipboard to check on another patient.

"I can't believe he won't even let us lay Julia down next to him for a minute or so…that's her papa were talking about, Captain." Scotty gasped.

"They have there reasons for sanitization." Captain Kirk answered, softly.

"I'm sure Mr. Spock could find a medicine to make McCoy feel better, again." Scotty answered.

A light bulb went off in Captain Kirk's head, then he turned to Scotty.

"Scotty, you're a genius," Captain Kirk cried.

"I am," Scotty questioned.

"That's where he is,"

"That's where who is,"

"To the science laboratory,"

Not knowing what else to do, Scotty ran off with Captain Kirk to the science laboratory room.

When they got there, they found Spock lying unconscious on an examining table. His legs and arms had been freed, but he was as stiff as a board.

"Spock," Captain Kirk cried.

He and Scotty ran over to Spock; Captain Kirk began shaking Spock.

"Spock…Spock…Spock….come on, Spock; you've gotta wake up!" Captain Kirk begged.

Spock remained motionless.

"Spock…Spock, answer me; what did those ghosts do to you?!" Captain Kirk cried.

Spock didn't respond; he then slowly opened his eyes and looked around the room, then at Captain Kirk and Scotty.

"Spock, are you alright," Captain Kirk questioned.

Spock wouldn't reply; he simply just lay there and stared.

"Spock…answer me, please," Captain Kirk begged.

Spock sat up, as if he were controlled by something else, and just sat there on the examining table, staring blankly at both Captain Kirk and Scotty.

"Spock…Spock…you've gotta snap out of it!" Captain Kirk cried.

Spock continued to sit there, lifeless and desolated. After what felt like hours, Spock closed his eyes then opened them again, and rubbed his temples before raising his head to face Captain Kirk.

"Captain," Spock spoke.

"Oh, thank God, you're alright." Captain Kirk sighed, relieved.

"Mr. Spock…what happened to yah?" Scotty questioned.

"The three ghosts wanted to brainwash me to make them one of their followers. They put me to sleep with sleeping gas in order to proceed with the procedure." Spock answered.

"So, how are you acting fine, now?" Captain Kirk questioned.

"I put myself in a form of a Vulcan trance, causing a barrier to surround my brain as protection. Of course, when I would awake, again, the medicine would have some effects to me, but not complete its purpose, which is, of course, brainwashing someone to follow commands of someone else." Spock answered.

Captain Kirk nodded.

"Good work, Spock," Captain Kirk answered.

Scotty's face froze, and his eyes gaped; he grabbed his head forcefully and let out a blood curdling shriek.

"Aahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh; no…no…no," Scotty screeched. He fell to the ground and began to shake furiously and continued to scream.

"Scotty," Captain Kirk cried.

"Aahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh," Scotty shrieked.

"Spock, is there anything you can do for him?" Captain Kirk begged.

Spock raised his eyebrow and analyzed the situation.

"Assuming that Mr. Scott's condition continues to gradually grow worse, I think the sense of touch would cause him to have a cardiac arrhythmia." Spock answered.

Scotty screamed louder and louder, then suddenly stopped and became dead silent.

"Scotty…are you alright," Captain Kirk quivered.

Scotty slowly rose from the ground; his eyes were getting blood shot, and his skin was beginning to turn white.

"Captain…if they show me my biggest fear…I think I'll lose it." Scotty cried, quivering.

"What did you see, Scotty; it sounded awful." Captain Kirk asked.

"My second biggest fear in the universe…losing my job."

"Oh, Scotty…I can assure you that you're one of the many people I wouldn't consider firing in decades."

"It still frightens me, Captain,"

Captain Kirk turned to Spock.

"If Mr. Scott is unfortunate and the ghosts do make him have his last vision, Mr. Scott's mind will simply just not take it. It will have been pushed beyond borders of its liking, thus creating him to lose sense of logicality and go into a psychotic state of instability." Spock answered.

"We can't let Scotty have his last vision." Captain Kirk ordered.

"How do yah suppose we prevent it from happening, Captain?" Scotty quivered, not wanting to face his biggest fear of all.

"Find out what those ghosts want and get rid of them." Captain Kirk snarled. He was ending this, and he was ending this now!


	9. Chapter 9

Captain Kirk, Spock, and Scotty had decided to go to Captain Kirk's quarters to plan their next step in finishing off these ghosts and rid them from the ship. The ghosts had managed to make his, Spock's, and Scotty's rooms have no power but emergency lights on. Beside the red light the faintly lit the room, the three of them were sitting in the dark surrounding Captain Kirk's desk.

"Alright, Captain…tell us what yah thinking of." Scotty questioned, keeping his head in the same direction, his face and eyes fixed the same, too. His head wouldn't move even the slightest bit; Spock had told him that it was the mental breakdown beginning, showing that Scotty was obviously close to becoming in some sort of psychotic state.

"I don't know, Scotty; what about you, Spock?" Captain Kirk asked, hoping the Vulcan would have a solution thought of.

Spock sighed before answering.

"Considering we're dealing with supernatural energy, none of our sources on the ship are strong enough nor capable of dealing to get the ship rid of these three ghosts. We'll need something that's as strong as them, if not, stronger." Spock answered.

"What kinda ghosts are those women, anyways, Mr. Spock?" Captain Kirk asked.

"By what I've observed in their physical features, their mental states, and distinction between good and evil, this type of ghost is known as a nightfall apparition." Spock answered.

"Which is what,"

"It's a disembodied soul from someone deceased, but instead of coming back as peaceful making spirits, they are filled with evil and hatred, wanting nothing more than to claim back what was rightfully once their's, until it was taken by someone long after their death."

"So, why is it called a 'nightfall' apparition?"

"These types of apparitions do not like to come out in the light; they prefer nighttime, or what we are currently experiencing with these red emergency lights on."

"So that's why the power's off in some places!"

"Correct, Captain,"

"So, how do we get rid of these ghosts?" Scotty questioned.

"I know that back on your planet, earth, ghosts can be chased away by the burning of sage." Spock answered.

"Spock, where are we gonna find sage; there's no sage even _on _the ship!" Captain Kirk cried.

"Then perhaps, there's another way to get rid of these spirits." Spock answered.

"Like how,"

"I've heard from ancient folklores that holy water can get rid of ghosts."

"What do we do with holy water?"

"Put it into the sprinkler system, and set them off while being under our control. After the ships walls, ceilings, and floors are covered in holy water, the apparitions will leave, as holy water is almost like a poison to ghosts."

"I guess it could work,"

"How much water and soap are we gonna need in order to cover the ship from head to toe in holy water?" Scotty questioned, coming back to a semi-normal state of mind.

"A bucket of warm water and soap will do; it will mix in with the water already in the sprinkler system, thus creating a mixture of the two to turn into pure holy water. Mr. Scott, you can control the sprinkler system, and I'll give the signal when to turn off the system." Spock answered.

"Shouldn't we warn the others?"

"I know a way to temporarily set the circuits up, so it'll only affect the areas necessary for this to work."

Captain Kirk nodded, when Julia began to be fussy, again. Captain Kirk hushed her and rocked her gently.

"I know…I know…it'll be all over soon, little lady; I promise." Captain Kirk cooed.

Julia continued crying and fussing.

Captain Kirk continued to hush her and looked towards Scotty.

"Poor little thing; probably wondering where her dad is." Scotty answered, sympathetically.

"I think she knows where he is…I think it's not knowing how he is is bothering her deeply." Captain Kirk answered, back.

The three men left Captain Kirk's quarters and headed off to the Engineering Room after gathering a bucket of warm water and soap to put in the sprinkler system.


	10. Chapter 10

Captain Kirk and Spock had finished filling the sprinkler system with the holy water. The two of them reported back to Scotty in Engineering. Spock had finished the last of the circuit wiring for their plan to work.

"Everything's ready, Mr. Scott," Spock answered.

Scotty nodded and walked over to his control panel. He flicked a few switches to turn on the system, then turned a key to start the sprinklers: nothing happened. He turned the switches off then back on, and turned the key, again. Still, nothing happened; the sprinklers weren't turning on.

"Mr. Spock, are yah sure yah wired the circuits correctly?" Scotty questioned.

"Affirmative, Mr. Scott," Spock answered.

Scotty flicked off the switches and went behind to see if the control panel was plugged in to the wall. After checking that, he opened the cupboards underneath and looked underneath it for any problems resulting from any faulty wires or wrong connected cable lines and circuits. He finished checking for those errors, then went pack to the control panel, again. He flicked on several more switches this time, the ones he had flicked on before, then turned the key: nothing!

"Well, this is peculiar, Captain." Scotty stated, puzzled.

"Why isn't it working, Scotty?" Captain Kirk demanded.

"I don't know; everything's on and should be working fine, Captain. I don't know what's wrong with the thing." Scotty answered, looking down at it, again. All the lights were on and the machine was making beeping noises. The sprinklers should've turned on without a single problem, so why wasn't his control panel working to turn them on?

"Is there another way you can turn them on, Scotty?" Captain Kirk wondered.

Scotty walked off to another control panel that controlled the ship's water and plumbing systems, but nothing else. Scotty typed a few things into the computer, pushed a few buttons, flicked a few switches, then pushed enter, when the machine made an 'error' beep.

"_The request you have made is not a function of this system. For help, press the call button to talk to your captain or Communications at Starfleet Command_." The computer spoke, robotically.

Scotty gaped at the machine.

"That's impossible; if Mr. Spock wired the circuits correctly, this should've worked. I've _never _been denied a programming operation, ever!" Scotty exclaimed.

"This is getting really freaky," Captain Kirk answered.

As Scotty was about to try again, the lights to Engineering flickered a few times before turning off to complete darkness. The emergency lights flipped on moments after that.

"Oh, this can't be good," Scotty muttered.

"I don't like where this is headed." Captain Kirk stated, softly.

"Captain," Spock stated, pointing in front of them.

Captain Kirk and Scotty turned around to see the three ghosts were back in their presence. Captain Kirk and Scotty gaped at them, worried for their lives. Spock just simply stood and gazed at the supernatural creatures before him. Scotty gulped, afraid that the ghosts would cause him to have his biggest fear be shown to him before going crazy.

Captain Kirk stepped a little towards the ghosts, but not too close, being cautious that he was caring for Julia at the moment's notice.

"Captain Kirk," Ghost #1 wailed.

"Captain Kirk," Ghost #2 wailed.

"Captain Kirk," Ghost #3 moaned.

"Stop…I wanna know what you three want, and I wanna know _now_!" Captain Kirk ordered.

"Leave this ship," Ghost #1 whined.

"Leave our ship," Ghost #2 wailed.

"Our ship…it was our's first," Ghost #3 moaned.

Scotty gasped.

"Captain…I think I know who three ladies are." Scotty gasped.

"You do, Scotty," Captain Kirk questioned.

"Well, I can't recognize them by how long they've been dead, but I think I know based off what they're saying and how they act."

"Who are they, Scotty,"

"You remember that story about the three women serving as commanders on the Enterprise almost 30 years ago?"

"When the Enterprise was the USS Toccata?"

"Aye, Captain,"

"I remember that ship; we learned about it back at the Academy. The USS Toccata was exploring Pyrius VI, when a deranged zombie like thing somehow got on the ship and murdered the three women, torturously. When the USS Toccata came back to earth's orbit, they completely remodeled the ship, put in new rooms, carpets, furniture, all that stuff. People say that whenever passing through the galaxy Pyrius VI is located in…" Captain Kirk's eyes gaped. "The three women come back to the ship and seek revenge on those who work on the ship for them being murdered so long, and their captain, Captain Jonathan Webber, didn't save them."

"The three women first went after Captain Webber's Chief Engineering Officer and best friend, Thomas Malloy, then his Chief Medical officer and best friend, Christopher Baker, and then his First Officer and best friend, Richard Donaldson. Malloy was tortured to insanity before he completely went crazy and killed himself with mercury by injection, Baker died from being stuck in the turbo lift and having it start on fire, and Donaldson was stabbed repeatedly and found dead on one of the decks."

"And then, once they had killed off Captain Webber's best friends, he went into a catatonic state for almost a year, came out of it, then jumped off a deadly cliff on Amadeus II, when he and few crew members were sent there to investigate the area."

"Now, they're trying to do it with you, Captain."

"Spock being almost brainwashed to become their follower, you being tortured to almost the point of insanity, and McCoy being poisoned with cyanide powder…it's all the same pattern that happened over 30 years ago back on the USS Toccata!"

"Aye,"

"Spock, what do we do?" Captain Kirk questioned, frightened, but managing to hide most of it. Captain Kirk now knew what the ghosts meant by 'leave the ship'; they wanted him to be gone…for entirety!


	11. Chapter 11

Captain Kirk and Scotty stood there, frozen, realizing what fate was leading them to: Scotty would go insane to the point of killing himself, Dr. McCoy could die from being poisoned with cyanide powder, Spock would be murdered, and Captain Kirk would be the last victim on the list.

"Captain…I don't wanna die," Scotty cried.

"No one's dying," Captain Kirk ordered, then realized Dr. McCoy was in a highly critical condition and had a high chance of dying. He sighed, realizing that factor of the plan had succeeded.

"Captain, if I do recall that folklore that both you and Mr. Scott just told, the three women were left on Pyrius VI, and their bodies were never buried to rest." Spock answered.

"Yes, and you're a Vulcan; glad we could identify that." Captain Kirk answered, coldly.

Spock raised an eyebrow at his captain, who, at the moment, wasn't making much sense.

"No, Captain," Spock answered.

"Leave our ship," Ghost #1 wailed.

"Off our ship," Ghost #2 wailed.

"Captain Kirk must die," Ghost #3 moaned.

"I'll do whatever you want, but please spare me and my ship!" Captain Kirk begged.

"McCoy will die," Ghost #1 wailed.

"Then will Scotty," Ghost #2 wailed.

"Spock goes next," Ghost #3 moaned.

"You leave my best friends alone; they did nothing to you! None of us have done anything to you!" Captain Kirk snapped.

"Kirk must die," Ghost #1 wailed.

"Captain Kirk, die," Ghost #2 wailed.

"Captain Kirk will die…like three others will." Ghost #3 moaned.

"My crew and I aren't the ones that killed you; you were murdered by some mad creature from Pyrius VI. Captain Webber couldn't have saved you three, if he would've tried; he managed to kill the creature, but that was all he could do for you and your crew, 30 years ago!" Captain Kirk pleaded.

The three ghosts cackled, brutally.

Scotty closed his eyes and tried to bring himself to his happy place; in Scotland, with his wife, alongside a mountain side, listening to a bagpipe player play old Scottish tunes, or him on a golf course playing 18 hole golf. He figured if he could think of something happy, the three ghosts couldn't make him hallucinate his biggest fear of all.

The ghosts faded away, then Captain Kirk turned to Spock.

"Spock…there's gotta be something we can do!" Captain Kirk begged.

"When I was speaking earlier, Captain, I know that laying bodies to rest will make their spirits rest, along with them." Spock answered.

"What are you saying," Captain Kirk questioned.

"If we go down to Pyrius VI and bury the bodies of the three women who were murdered on the USS Toccata, the ghosts will stop haunting the ship and leave to go to the other world, which they won't be able to return here after."

"Spock, how are we gonna even find those bodies on Pyrius VI; first off, it's dark and cloudy on Pyrius IV, second of all, they were murdered over 30 years ago. They're probably just skeletons by now."

"Captain…it's our only choice," Scotty spoke.

"Either that, or you will die, Captain." Spock stated, flatly.

Captain Kirk sighed, then he walked over to a communication device on the wall.

"Mr. Sulu, are we near Pyrius VI?" Captain Kirk questioned.

"_A few miles away, but we're in close range with it, Captain…why_?" Sulu asked.

"Put us in its orbit; Mr. Spock, Mr. Scott, and I are beaming down." Captain Kirk ordered, then hung up. Captain Kirk motioned for the two men to walk out of Engineering and down to the transportation room. The three men walked in a line, leaving Engineering and headed down the hall.

In Sickbay…

Dr. McCoy flickered his eyes a few times, then closed them, again. He fluttered his eyes, then opened them, slowly. He gazed around the room with his eyes, then slowly moved his head side to side, then back to face the front. He felt exhausted, and had no idea why; he didn't think being poisoned would make someone feel so tired, but he guessed he was wrong on that one.

He very softly grunted and swallowed, then let out a breath.

Dr. M'Benga walked into Dr. McCoy's room then saw him awake.

"Doctor, you're awake," Dr. M'Benga cheered.

"…I am," Dr. McCoy spoke, raspy.

"And your vitals seem to be going back to normal. How do you feel?"

"Tired,"

"You'll feel tired for a while; I would recommend another week in here before reporting back to your duties."

Dr. McCoy nodded, barely.

"I wanna see my daughter," Dr. McCoy spoke, softly.

"I don't know, McCoy; I don't think you have the energy for any visitors, in your condition." Dr. M'Benga answered.

"Then tell Jim I'm fine, and I'd love them to come in and see me…though…I'll be…sleeping." Dr. McCoy was drifting off to sleep.

"Alright, McCoy; I will certainly do that."

Dr. M'Benga tucked in Dr. McCoy's blankets more, so he could be warmer, then walked off. Dr. McCoy sighed and fell back to sleep.

In the dark, creepy, haunting night of Pyrius VI, Captain Kirk, Spock, and Scotty stood before three filled in piles of dirt. Spock was removing gloves, and Scotty held a shovel in his hands. They took a moment of silence to be respectful, then nodded. The three men walked off from the graves and walked towards where they landed.

"I have to be honest, I actually felt bad for those ladies; they weren't evil, just sick." Scotty answered.

"Well, Scotty, this is why once people depart from this world, they never come back. It's not fair to them or to us." Captain Kirk answered.

"Mr. Scott, just to be clear, what is your biggest fear of, anyways?" Spock questioned.

Scotty sighed; he wasn't gonna be seeing anymore hallucinations, and Captain Kirk and Spock were his best friends and respect that he had this horrid fear.

"When I was in middle school, our school somehow lit on fire. I got trapped in a computer room, when all the doors locked for safety reasons. I was sure I would die, Mr. Spock; I saw those flames get so close to the door, I could feel the heat burning my face…and I've been afraid of fire and being burned alive ever since." Scotty answered.

"How did you get out, Scotty?" Captain Kirk questioned. He had no idea how horrified Scotty must feel about fire; it must be an awful thing to live with in someone's life.

"A firefighter saved me, Captain; I've been grateful to that man ever since." Scotty answered.

"Scotty…I'm so sorry," Captain Kirk spoke, sadly.

"It's not yah fault, Captain; it was just a horrible accident that happened. And besides, everybody's afraid of something." Scotty answered.

"Well…except Spock," Captain Kirk chimed in.

Spock raised an eyebrow.

As Spock was about to comment on that remark, Captain Kirk's communicator went off.

"Kirk, here," Captain Kirk answered.

"_Captain, it's Dr. M'Benga_," Dr. M'Benga spoke.

"What is it, Dr. M'Benga," Captain Kirk pleaded.

"_Dr. McCoy's gonna be just fine; he'd like you three to come see him…and uh, oh…bring his little girl, too_."

"Dr. M'Benga, will be up in a minute!"

Captain Kirk slapped his communicator shut, grinning brightly.

Him, Spock, and Scotty notified the ship to beam them aboard, and were soon enough of the planet's ground and back on the ship, leaving orbit for their next destination.


	12. Chapter 12

A week had gone by, and the USS Enterprise was in the next galaxy looking for new planets or commands to follow instruction.

Dr. McCoy was sitting at his desk in Sickbay holding Julia in his arms, playing with her. He tickled her, gave her kisses and hugs, and bounced her, and laughed whenever she would giggle or smile.

"What 'cha doing; what 'cha doing; what 'cha doing, there," Dr. McCoy cooed.

Julia smile and made coo noises.

Dr. McCoy smiled and kissed her little cheek then held her in his arms, as she sat on his lap. He simply just turned his chair side to side and smiled at her, as she played with a pen she found interesting on his desk.

Captain Kirk, Spock, and Scotty walked into Sickbay to find Dr. McCoy with his little girl.

"Bones, aren't you suppose to be working?" Captain Kirk asked.

"I am working," Dr. McCoy answered, with a smile.

Captain Kirk smirked.

"I meant your job as a Starfleet Surgeon." Captain Kirk stated.

"Being a father's also my job, and when I'm not busy with anything, I'll do just that." Dr. McCoy answered, smiling down at Julia, who was sucking her fingers.

Spock eyed Julia, not finding a logical reason as to why she was sucking on her fingers, but decided to keep it to himself.

"She's such a cutie, yes yah are, little lass!" Scotty cooed, waving his finger to Julia.

Dr. McCoy chuckled, as he looked down at Julia look at Scotty with her little blue eyes. She knew, of course, who Captain Kirk, Spock, and Scotty were, but she always looked at them, as if something about them fascinated her every time she saw them.

"Seems like she's got Spock's curiosity." Captain Kirk teased, looking at Julia's little face.

Dr. McCoy chuckled.

"Just as long as she doesn't get curious with everything." Dr. McCoy answered, smiling.

"Fascinating," Spock spoke.

"Hey, who knows, Spock; maybe she'll grow up to act like you." Captain Kirk teased.

Spock raised an eyebrow and then decided to take that thought into consideration…another one of him.


End file.
